If you run grounds-maintenance equipment, two sets of UK regulations apply to almost everything in your yard: PUWER and LOLER. They sound like jargon, but the principle is simple, your kit must be safe, suitable and maintained, and some of it must be formally inspected on a schedule. Here is what they mean in plain English.
This is general guidance, not legal advice. Always check current HSE guidance and have a competent person advise on your specific equipment and operations.
PUWER, for (almost) all your equipment
PUWER is the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998. It applies to virtually all work equipment — mowers, tractors, strimmers, blowers, hand tools, trailers, sprayers. In short, PUWER says equipment must be:
- Suitable for the job and conditions.
- Maintained in safe working order.
- Inspected where needed to keep it safe.
- Used only by people who are trained and competent.
- Fitted with appropriate safety features (guards, controls, markings).
PUWER doesn't set one fixed inspection interval; it requires inspection at suitable intervals based on risk and use, plus maintenance per the manufacturer's schedule. In practice that means daily/pre-use checks by the operator, plus periodic servicing.
LOLER, for lifting equipment specifically
LOLER is the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998. It applies on top of PUWER to equipment used for lifting or lowering loads — think vehicle tail-lifts, hoists, cranes, vehicle lifts, and some attachments used to lift. Most pedestrian and ride-on mowers are not lifting equipment, but a tractor with a front loader, a tail-lift on a tipper, or a workshop hoist will be.
Where LOLER applies, lifting equipment must have a thorough examination by a competent person, typically:
- Every 6 months for equipment used to lift people, or
- Every 12 months for other lifting equipment,
- or in line with an examination scheme drawn up by a competent person.
The competent person issues a report of thorough examination, which you must keep.
What about vehicles?
Road-going vehicles (vans, tippers, some tractors) also need a valid MOT and routine servicing. That's separate from PUWER/LOLER but belongs in the same place in your head: dated obligations that must not lapse.
The records you should keep
Whatever the regime, the theme is the same, be able to prove it. Keep:
- A register of every machine with make, model and serial/asset number.
- Daily/pre-use check records (often done by the operator on a checklist).
- Service and maintenance history.
- LOLER thorough examination reports for lifting equipment.
- MOT and statutory dates for vehicles.
If an inspector or an insurer asks, you want to produce this in seconds, not search a filing cabinet.
How to stay on top of it
The failure mode is always the same: a date slips because the reminder lived in someone's head, and a machine goes out non-compliant. The fix is to track every due date in one fleet register that reminds you before anything is due (LOLER, PUWER inspections, MOT) and to run daily pre-use checks on the crew's phones so defects surface early (a failed check can raise a job to fix it). That turns compliance from a scramble into a routine.
SwardOps tracks LOLER, PUWER and MOT due dates per machine with reminders before they lapse, plus daily check templates for crews. Start a free trial (no card needed) to see it.